Family Christmas Gathering

Traditions

1. 100 The plant traditionally hung in a doorway for people to kiss beneath Response: Mistletoe In the advent of the Christian era, mistletoe in the Western world became associated with Christmas as a decoration under which lovers are expected to kiss, as well as with protection from witches and demons. Source: Wikipedia, “Mistletoe”
2. 200 The calendar used to count down the days before Christmas Response: An Advent calendar An Advent calendar, from the German word Adventskalender, is used to count the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Source: Wikipedia, “Advent calendar”
3. 300 The circular evergreen decoration often hung on a door Response: A wreath While Advent wreaths are erected on stands or placed on tables, Christmas wreaths are often hung on doors or walls. Source: Wikipedia, “Wreath”
4. 400 The striped sweet often shaped like a shepherd's crook Response: A candy cane A candy cane is a cane-shaped stick candy often associated with Christmastide as well as Saint Nicholas Day. Source: Wikipedia, “Candy cane”
5. 500 The decoration placed over a fireplace to hold small gifts Response: A stocking A Christmas stocking is an empty sock or sock-shaped bag that is hung on Saint Nicholas Day or Christmas Eve so that Saint Nicholas (or the related figures of Santa Claus and Father Christmas) can fill it with small toys, candy, fruit, coins or other small gifts when he arrives. Source: Wikipedia, “Christmas stocking”

Winter

1. 100 Frozen water that falls in flakes Response: Snow Snow forms when water in the atmosphere becomes frozen. Source: Simple English Wikipedia, “Snow”
2. 200 The shortest day of the year occurs near this event in the Northern Hemisphere Response: The winter solstice For that hemisphere, the winter solstice is the day with the shortest period of daylight and longest night of the year, and when the Sun is at its lowest arc in the sky. Source: Wikipedia, “Winter solstice”
3. 300 A vehicle that travels over snow on runners Response: A sleigh A sleigh (pronounced "slay") is a horse-drawn vehicle mounted on runners for travel over snow or ice and pulled by one or more horses. Source: Wikipedia, “Sleigh”
4. 400 A crystal of ice with a six-fold pattern Response: A snowflake Although snowflakes are never perfectly symmetrical, the growth of a non-aggregated snowflake often approximates six-fold radial symmetry, arising from the hexagonal crystalline structure of ice. Source: Wikipedia, “Snowflake”
5. 500 The season that begins in December in the Northern Hemisphere Response: Winter According to this definition, for temperate areas in the northern hemisphere, spring begins on 1 March, summer on 1 June, autumn on 1 September, and winter on 1 December. Source: Wikipedia, “Season”

Holiday Food

1. 100 A house-shaped treat made from spiced cookie dough Response: A gingerbread house A gingerbread house is a novelty confectionery shaped like a building that is made of cookie dough, cut and baked into appropriate components like walls and roofing. Source: Wikipedia, “Gingerbread house”
2. 200 A warm drink made with cocoa powder or melted chocolate Response: Hot chocolate Hot chocolate, also known as hot cocoa or drinking chocolate, is a heated drink consisting of shaved or melted chocolate or cocoa powder, and heated milk or water. Source: Wikipedia, “Hot chocolate”
3. 300 The fruit used to make cranberry sauce Response: Cranberries Usually cranberries as fruit are cooked into a compote or jelly, known as cranberry sauce. Source: Wikipedia, “Cranberry”
4. 400 A small sweet pie traditionally filled with dried fruit and spices in Britain Response: A mince pie A mince pie, also known as 'minced pie', is a small British fruit-based mince sweet pie. Source: Simple English Wikipedia, “Mince pie”
5. 500 A log-shaped French Christmas cake Response: A bûche de Noël The name bûche de Noël originally referred to the Yule log itself, and was transferred to the dessert after that custom had fallen out of popular use. Source: Wikipedia, “Yule log (cake)”

Music

1. 100 In Deck the Halls, the halls are decked with boughs of which plant? Response: Holly Deck the hall with boughs of holly. Source: Wikipedia, “Deck the Halls”
2. 200 Which kind of bells ring in the song about a one-horse open sleigh? Response: Jingle bells The song was republished in 1859 by Oliver Ditson and Company, 277 Washington Street, Boston, with the new title "Jingle Bells; or, The One Horse Open Sleigh". Source: Wikipedia, “Jingle Bells”
3. 300 How many days of Christmas are counted in the cumulative carol about gifts from a true love? Response: Twelve A classic example of a cumulative song, the lyrics detail a series of increasingly numerous gifts given to the speaker by their "true love" on each of the twelve days of Christmas (the twelve days that make up the Christmas season, starting with Christmas Day). Source: Wikipedia, “The Twelve Days of Christmas (song)”
4. 400 The peaceful quality described in the title Silent Night Response: Silence or quiet More than one answer can be right: accept any answer the player can explain.
5. 500 The instrument often rung by hand in holiday music Response: A bell More than one answer can be right: accept any answer the player can explain.

Stories

1. 100 The girl who travels with the Prince to the Land of Sweets Response: Clara Clara and the Prince travel to the beautiful Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Prince's place until his return. Source: Wikipedia, “The Nutcracker”
2. 200 The miser who changes his ways in A Christmas Carol Response: Ebenezer Scrooge Throughout the novella, visits from the four ghosts show Scrooge the errors of his ways, and he transforms into a better, more generous man. Source: Wikipedia, “Ebenezer Scrooge”
3. 300 The red-nosed reindeer from a well-known Christmas story and song Response: Rudolph The story chronicles the experiences of Rudolph, a youthful reindeer buck who possesses an unusual luminous red nose. Source: Wikipedia, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
4. 400 The wooden figure at the center of The Nutcracker Response: A nutcracker Clara and her brother Fritz are sad to see the dolls being taken away, but Drosselmeyer has yet another toy for them: a wooden nutcracker doll, which the other children ignore. Source: Wikipedia, “The Nutcracker”
5. 500 The gift-bringing figure also known as Father Christmas Response: Santa Claus Santa Claus is known as de Kerstman in Dutch ("the Christmas man") and Père Noël ("Father Christmas") in French. Source: Wikipedia, “Santa Claus”

Final round: Christmas Literature

In A Christmas Carol, who is Ebenezer Scrooge's overworked, underpaid clerk? Response: Robert Cratchit Robert Cratchit is a fictional character in the Charles Dickens 1843 novel A Christmas Carol. The overworked, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge, Cratchit has come to symbolize the poor working conditions, especially long working hours and low pay, endured by many working-class people in the early Victorian era. Source: Wikipedia, “Bob Cratchit”